Stone Age discovery made during laying of water main

Archaeologists cleaning the walls of a Roman structure found in Fetcham

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A Stone Age hunting camp, Roman villa and other prehistoric findings have been discovered during the laying of a new water main in Fetcham.

The finds were unearthed during the installation of a new iron pipeline by Sutton and East Surrey Water at Cobham Road in the valley close to the river Mole.

Kevin Shilling, project manager at Sutton and East Surrey Water, said: “With around 20km of pipeline being replaced in our supply each year, there are occasions when we uncover archaeological remains.

“However, the Fetcham excavation has been quite surprising, we didn’t expect findings from 10,000 years ago to come to light. We are excited to have been part of it.”

'Extremely rare'

Neolithic, Bronze Age and Iron Age finds were made, but the earliest discoveries were of a Late Upper Palaeolithic or Early Mesolithic Stone Age camp where hunter-gatherers had stopped to knap flint to make repairs to hunting equipment.

Rob Poulton, senior archaelogical adviser at the unit, said: “This type of evidence is extremely rare, with few parallels regionally, or even nationally.

“The flintwork found ties in with the theory that hunter-gatherers moved along terraces and floodplains of the rivers, utilising naturally exposed outcrops of flint.”

The attractiveness of the Fetcham site for hunter-gatherers obviously continued from the early into the late Mesolithic Stone Age as an area of late Mesolithic flintwork, indicating a temporary camp for similar purposes, was also encountered.

The site would have provided an area with access to water, waterfowl, game and shelter.

Roman evidence

The remains of a Roman building, consisting of flint wall foundations, were also identified, with relatively large amounts of flue tile suggesting the existence of a bathhouse complex.

Pottery found indicates its period of use began in the middle of the second century and extended to the later fourth century.

“Finding a Roman villa close to a river is very unusual in Surrey and the discovery is an important addition to our knowledge,” added Mr Poulton.

“Nothing similar is known for a substantial area around and Roman evidence generally is very limited in the Leatherhead and Fetcham areas.”

The full archaeological report is available from SpoilHeap publications or the Surrey History Centre.